As the world faces a new frontier of phased-in uncertainty, and likewise opportunity, we can’t be sure what lies ahead. But authors of science fiction past and present like to re-imagine in ways that can help us to remake a possible new future for us and new generations to come.
With stories of interstellar colonization, fantastical civilizations, optimistic alternate worlds, and potential catastrophically devasting outcomes, the worlds and characters they inhibit reflect ours and at least offer some escapism, and hopefully pose a new world of possibilities.
Here are eight reads that we would recommend to take you there:
“Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley
Published back in 1932, this classic was a vision of Huxley’s future. A world that’s peaceful yet babies are born in science laborites and independent thought is discouraged. The protagonist, Bernard Marx, wonders if there’s something more out there. This titles has been hailed as an incredibly intuitive insight into a world developing under the rule of technology, sleep-learning, and psychology. A must read.
“The City and the Stars” by Arthur C Clarke
One of the most incredible works of science fiction ever penned, Clarke tells of the last city on Earth: Diaspar. The city is ruled hollowly by immortals who never change. The ultimate tale of purgatory imagined. That is until Alvin, the first new human to be created in aeons, comes back into the world. He searches for other humans on a journey of discovery and revelation. Inexplicably beautifully told.
“How Long ‘til Black Future Month?” by N.K. Jemisin
N.K. Jemisin became the first author ever to earn three consecutive Hugo Awards for Best Novel for her phenomenal Broken Earth trilogy. Since then she’s brought together this collection of short fiction. Each story in this collection simmers with a righteous fury at the state of the world. Her characters often find themselves at the end of systematic injustice, and her stories, a mix of cyberpunk, epic and urban fantasy, hard science fiction, and more, critique modern life. Compelling, fantastic and incredibly timely.
“Foundryside” by Robert Jackson Bennett
Want to read the best in cyberpunk and fantasy? This is as good as that combo gets. A thief named Sancia Grado can sense magic – making it easier for her to navigate around the fantastical world laid out by Bennett. The undertones of her story, and the lengths she will go to, reflect deeply on the corporation commentary of today.
“Ancillary Justice” by Ann Leckie
This far-future tale is multi-award winning and for good reason. In an empire policed by AI, planets live in harmony once they have been subjugated, but at extensive sacrifice. We follow the journey of one of the empire’s warships formerly destroyed and now rules by an AI mind.
“Revenger” by Alastair Reynolds
A hard a science fiction adventure story set in the rubble of our solar system in the dark, distant future, somewhat of a departure for Reynolds but brilliant all the same. This is a tale of space pirates, buried treasure, and phantom weapons, of unspeakable hazards and single-minded heroism and vengeance. If that doesn’t spark you’re imagination, we’re not sure what will..?
“Children of the New World: Stories” by Alexander Weinstein
This novel features 13 short stories that imagine what the future could look like. Much like the Netflix series “Black Mirror,” the narratives are a bit unnerving, and include social media implants, memory manufacturers, immersive virtual reality games, and human-like robots. Chillingly close to the bone.
“The Tiger Flu” by Larissa Lai
Set in the distant future, humanity survives on a planet wrecked by climate change and plagues in Larissa Lai’s latest novel The Tiger Flu, which follows a community of cloned women who are battling for their very survival waged by illness and economics. Lai’s story follows two women: Kirilow, a doctor of Grist Village whose lover Peristrophe dies of a new strain of flu. Chillingly close to home.
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